Inside the Nest of Giants with Iceland’s Strongest Men

Iceland’s reputation in the World's Strongest Man competition is almost as powerful as the athletes who represent it. 

Back in 2014, VICE traveled to the island nation to speak with some of its most renowned strongmen, including Magnús Ver Magnússon, the four-time World's Strongest Man, and Hafþór “Thor” Júlíus Björnsson, the third most decorated strongman in history and “the Mountain” on Game of Thrones. They shared their extreme training methods and thoughts on why this tiny island produces such strong people. 

The documentary’s host, journalist Clive Martin, visited dark and frigid Iceland during mid-winter, when average temps dip well below zero and daylight barely lasts beyond four hours. His first stop was at Jakaból Gym, known as the Nest of Giants.

“Jakaból occupies a significant but sad place in the history of Icelandic strongmen,” Martin explained. 

The gym was originally opened by Jón Páll Sigmarsson, the poster boy for the Iceland strongmen scene in the 1980s and 90s and another four-time World’s Strongest Man winner. However, after his tragic death in the gym at the young age of 32, it closed down.

Jakaból was later re-opened by Sigmarsson’s archrival, Magnus Ver Magnússon. According to Martin, the gym appeared more like a construction site than a workout studio—filled with “steel, concrete, and sweat.”

“There are a lot of things I’ve developed,” said Magnússon. “I know how to build things. I know how to work with metal. So making aluminum blocks, for example, that whole thing was my idea.”

Magnússon built the log lifts, cylinders, and other impressive materials used in the gym. He also hosted some of the most intense training sessions for the “giants” who were members.

“You gotta figure out a way to make them go to their limits without killing them,” Magnússon said with a smirk.

“You gotta figure out a way to make them go to their limits without killing them.” –Magnús Ver Magnússon

When asked about the future of strongmen as a sport, Magnússon had some ideas on how to expand it.

“The sport has grown, but I’m still waiting for it to take that really big leap,” he said at the time. “What I would love to see is a bunch of big, strong guys on an island and make them do Survivor. Show these guys they can do something else than just lift big things.”

Jakaból wasn’t the only Icelandic fitness center hosting extreme training sessions—just as strongmen weren’t the only people working out. 

Skólahreysti, meaning “fit for school,” is an annual competition featuring a military-style obstacle course created for children. Co-founded by Andrés Guðmundsson, a former Icelandic strongman, and his wife, the course was meant to instill the Icelandic Spirit from a young age.

“Everybody wants to go out and do something and be strong,” Guðmundsson said. “It’s something you have. Everybody has it. We’re just playing with that and try to do that more.”

Skólahreysti includes a variety of physically challenging obstacles, such as monkey bars, ropes, climbing, tire jumping, crawling, and more.

For Sölvi Fannar— an Icelandic polymath who’s an agent for strongmen as well as an actor, model, musician, poet, and physician—the obstacle course represents the future of strength “not only in Iceland but probably the world.”

“You have to have a lot of different attributes to be able to be successful at it,” he said. “That will do you good in any sport.”

But physical exercise isn’t the only part of being a strongman. According to Hafþór “Thor” Júlíus Björnsson, the 6'9", 430lb actor and Iceland’s reigning strongest man, diet is—of course—a major factor in maintaining a sturdy build. In fact, it was even in his Game of Thrones contract to eat every few hours.

“You can’t skip meals,” he explained. “If I skip meals, I’d just get lighter.”

So you might be wondering—though these strongmen are incredibly strong, is all the abuse their bodies endure healthy?

Take Sigmarsson, for instance. The strongmen idol—and the inspiration behind many of Iceland’s giants—died of a traumatic aortic rupture while deadlifting. Though he had a previously diagnosed congenital heart defect, the suspected heart attack was likely brought on by the immense strain put on his body during the heavy lift.

Nevertheless, when asked whether they’re worried about suffering a similar fate, most strongmen shrugged off the possibility.

“It’s probably also dangerous to cross the street,” said strongman Stefán Sölvi Pétursson, who placed in the top 10 of the World's Strongest Man twice. “You can get hit by a car, but that’s just how it is.”

It’s a strange contradiction: harboring insurmountable strength and deep vulnerability. But for the Giants of Iceland, it simply comes with the territory.

“What separates the Icelandic strongmen from the rest of the world is the understanding of the story,” said Martin, the film’s host. “The story of a country where just living meant fighting against the odds. The story of a little black rock that took on the world and won. The story of Iceland: the ‘Nest of Giants.’”